Swandean School of English, Oxford

Welcome to Swandean School of English. The school has been established since 1976 and achieves its excellent success rate through a happy balance of work and social life. Swandean is one of only about 300 private schools in Britain to be accredited by the British Council for the teaching of English as a foreign language. Swandean is also a member of ARELS, the Association of Recognised English Language Services. We aim to provide you with three important benefits: 1.To improve your spoken and written English to the best of your ability within your time with us. 2.To make you feel \"at home\" in England by friendly teaching and by carefully choosing your accommodation, usually with a homestay. 3.To help you enjoy your free time, both in social activities organised by the school and by following your own interests.

The course takes place on the premises of Oriel College Oxford. Oriel College is one of the oldest colleges in Oxford University. It was founded in 1326 by King Edward II. The college\'s official title is \"The House of the Blessed Mary the Virgin in Oxford\". The college stands in the centre of the University area in the city. It is one of the smaller colleges, having two hundred and ninety undergraduates and one hundred and sixty graduate students during the academic year. This special course takes place during the summer vacation of the University.

Your course will consist of 30 lessons of 45 minutes each per week (22.5 hours per week). You can stay for any period from two weeks to one year. The average number of students in a class is 8 to 10, with a maximum of 12. The Intensive Course covers: •Coursebook work: grammar, listening, reading, writing, pair work, problem-solving tasks and vocabulary exercises. •Oral work: pair work, group discussions, debates, role-play, pronunciation, syllable stress, sentence stress and intonation. • The class teacher and the Director of Studies will monitor your progress and give assistance on individual learning problems. You can advance to higher levels as your standards improve and - as with all our courses - you will receive an end-of-course certificate for the level you attain. If you wish to go on to a British University or College of Higher or Further Education, we can help you improve your English to the required IELTS or TOEFL level for entry and advise you on the choice of where and what to study.

Where will you stay? One of the best ways you can learn English is by staying in an English home. Our Accommodation Officers inspect suitable homes and the chosen hosts will provide you with bed, breakfast and an evening meal, a packed lunch for school days and excursions, and lunches in the home on other days. To encourage you to speak English we do not place another student speaking your language with you unless requested. Some students like to share a twin- bedded room with a fellow student of a different nationality, so they can go out together and share experiences. Others prefer a single room. The choice is yours. Simply state your preference on your enrolment form. For students who prefer to be fully independent we can also arrange accommodation in a local guest house or hotel – but the cost will be at least double.

Our full-time Social Programme Organiser plans activities in discussion with the students and you can choose how much or how little you want to participate. A typical programme might include: • A theatre or cinema trip • A school party • Visits to local pubs and discos • A live music evening • A country walk • A video evening • Ten-pin bowling • A visit to a sports centre/swimming pool • Tennis or cricket • Football or volleyball • An international food party There are full-day excursions most weekends to such places as London, Cambridge, Oxford or Portsmouth as well as trips further afield, for example to Scotland. The Social Programme Organiser or another representative of the school accompanies students on all the events in the programme. If you have particular hobbies or interests you wish to follow, let us know and we will do our best to advise you or make arrangements for you.